DeLand, Fla. ? Sophomore forward Jessica Conner (Cocoa, Fla.) scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead five scorers in double figures as the Stetson women's basketball team (1-1) defeated visiting Norfolk State 84-70 in its home opener at the Edmunds Center on Sunday. Senior guard Sharnesha Smith (Kingsland, Ga.) notched her first career double-double with 10 points and a career-high 12 assists while sophomore guard Tierra Brown (Orlando, Fla.) poured in 17 points and tallied a career-high six steals.
The Hatters, who led by 14 at halftime and by 18 with 13:28 to go, had to weather a furious Spartan comeback attempt before Head Coach Lynn Bria could claim her first victory in green and white. Norfolk State outscored Stetson 23-9 over a seven-minute stretch that culminated with Danelle Tate's basket in the paint with three minutes to go, making it a one-point game (70-69). On the next possession, however, Smith found freshman guard Jessica Bivins (Orlando, Fla.) open on the right wing for a basket to extend the lead to three, a bucket that kickstarted a game-ending 14-1 run. The Spartans would not make another field goal the rest of the way.
“Offensively we did some really good things but I need to see us make more stops on defense,” Bria remarked after the win. “Jessica and Ashli (Jackson) had big games which we definitely needed and Sharnesha was terrific as usual.”
The 84 points scored by Stetson marked the team's highest output since the historic 88-62 win over Georgia State in the 2005 Atlantic Sun Conference championship game. Five Hatters scored in double figures for the first time since an 88-82 win over Belmont at the Edmunds Center on February 12, 2005. Sophomore forward Ashli Jackson (Opelika, Ala.) had 15 points and a career-high tying nine rebounds while Bivins added 13 points to join Conner, Brown and Smith in double digits. Freshman guard Kelly Ellison (Columbus, Ga.) contributed seven points, three rebounds, two assists and four steals.
Marquilla Evans led all scorers with 22 points for Norfolk State (0-2), adding five assists, four rebounds, two steals and a block. Ebony Gibbs tallied 14 points. The Hatters forced the Spartans to turn the ball over 31 times, recording 17 steals in the process.
Stetson controlled play throughout the first half, forcing 20 NSU turnovers. After trading baskets early, Conner's turnaround jumper in the paint four minutes into the ballgame gave the Hatters a 9-8 lead they would not relinquish the rest of the afternoon.
The Hatters are back in action Tuesday when they travel down Interstate 4 to Tampa to face USF. Tip-off at the Sun Dome is set for 7 p.m. Bill Topping will broadcast all the action online through Hatter Vision at www.GoHatters.com, the official online home of Stetson Athletics.
